Seriously Wounded Soldier's Life in Danger

Head of the Soroka Hospital in Be’er Sheva says that the wounds sustained by an IDF soldier near Gaza are life threatening.

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Elad Benari, 11/11/12 01:45

Wounded soldier

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Dr. Michael Sharf, head of the Soroka Hospital in Be’er Sheva, said on Saturday evening that the wounds of the IDF soldier who was hit in a terrorist attack on a jeep near Gaza were life threatening.

“Whenever someone is seriously wounded there is a danger to his life,” Dr. Sharf told Channel 2 News.

"The soldier who was seriously wounded suffered injuries to his head and eyes,” he said. "He is currently undergoing surgery and will require intervention that will continue into the night. We are making efforts to stabilize him and I believe that in the next 24 hours we will have an updated report on his condition.”

Another soldier who was moderately wounded, said Dr. Sharf, “also has an eye injury as well as a shoulder injury. He is also in the operating room and his wounds were due to shrapnel."

Two other soldiers who were wounded in the attack were in light to moderate condition, suffering from shrapnel wounds. They were evacuated to Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon.

The IDF responded with heavy tank fire at the eastern part of Gaza and at an area east of Khan Younis. There were also reports of artillery fire and fire from helicopters.

By 9:00 p.m., reports said three Arabs were killed and 29 were wounded in Israeli counterstrikes on Gaza.

Also on Saturday evening, Gaza terrorists fired a barrage of at least 30 rockets at southern Israel. In all attacks there were no physical injuries. One vehicle sustained damage in a rocket attack in the western Negev. As well, one rocket that exploded between two houses in the Eshkol Regional Council hit a power line. Part of the area lost power as a result, but there were no physical injuries.

The Home Front Command has ordered residents of communities near Gaza to stay within 15 seconds of a protected space.

IAF aircraft attacked on Saturday night a terrorist squad in northern Gaza that was in the midst of an attempt to fire rockets at southern Israel.

The IDF said in a statement that a direct hit was detected. Sources in the Palestinian Authority said that a terrorist from the Islamic Jihad group was killed in the airstrike.